


Let It Snow

by TheShorty



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Platonic (or is it?) cuddling, Seasons, Snow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-12 13:34:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16873818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheShorty/pseuds/TheShorty
Summary: Set anytime post-Resolutions.Kathryn finds Chakotay on the holodeck contemplating the seasons.Day 5 of the 25 Days of Voyager.





	Let It Snow

**Author's Note:**

> Not beta-read. Just contemplative, seasonal, kinda-fluffy musings from our favorite tattooed Commander.

Kathryn took a tentative step into the holodeck, crossing her arms across her abdomen at the chill in the air. As the doors closed behind her, she surveyed the open field with a light dusting of snow, a dark forest shadowing to her right and the field continuing to her left as far as she could see. The sky was cloudless and bright with stars and a sliver of a moon.

What she didn’t see, despite the computer’s reassurance to the contrary, was her First Officer.

“Chakotay?” she called out, the hesitation evident even as her voice carried across the field. When she didn’t hear any immediate response, she moved further into the field and called out again. Shivering against the cold, she continued to move into the program, hoping to find a clue to his location.

The soft trickle of moving water caught her attention. Kathryn hurried towards the sound, finding a small stream running through the middle of the field, hidden by the tall grasses and her initial angle of approach from the holodeck doors. Deciding Chakotay would probably stay in the field instead of under the cover of trees, given the gorgeous night he had programmed, the petite woman wrapped her arms tighter around herself and followed the spring further into the field.

“Kathryn?” Chakotay’s voice carried from somewhere in the dark before her. “Is that you?”

“Chakotay, where are you?” she responded Socratically.

Even knowing he was somewhere close, Kathryn jumped when his warm hand closed around her shoulder. “You must be freezing. Come on.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and shuffled her quickly down the bank to a small fire.

“First the creek, now a whole fire,” she mumbled to herself as she sank down on the blanket he indicated, “if it woulda been a snake.” She smiled up at him as he flipped a wool blanket around her shoulders before taking a seat beside her.

“Did you say something?” he asks, looking at her profile in the firelight.

“Nothing important.”

He waited for her to continue, since she was the one who sought him out in his program. Kathryn stared into the flames, quiet and unmoving. A small smile crossed his face as he shook his head.

“Then did you come here for a reason?” his voice held a teasing lilt.

“I…” she started, stopping momentarily as another chill shook her body. Chakotay scooted closer, instinctively wrapping his arm and blanket around her. She looked almost startled for a moment before mumbling her thanks and scooting closer to him. “It’s been a weird few days. I mean, I know weird is part of the job but… I just….” Her eyes widened as her voice trailed off. “I’m interrupting. You were meditating, weren’t you? Oh, heavens, Chakotay. I’m so sorry. I should have at least commed first to make sure it was okay. I’ll go, we can talk later.”

A flustered, red-faced Kathryn brushed his arm and the blankets from her shoulders as she stood, turning back towards the doors before Chakotay could fully process what she was saying and respond.

“Wait, Kathryn, slow down. You don’t have to go.” His hand caught her forearm from his position on the blanket. “I appreciate the company. I was just reflecting, thinking about things I missed.” 

She studied him for a moment. Chakotay raised his eyebrow in question then tilted his head towards the blanket she just evacuated. “Sit.” He said, his voice quiet but firm.

Kathryn sat.

After pulling the blanket back up around her shoulders, she angled her body toward the man beside her. “Since I so rudely interrupted your time... Would you like to talk about… whatever you were thinking about? I’m assuming it has something to do with why you chose a program with snow.”

The crooked smile he pointed towards her as he chuckles warms her belly. He picked at the blanket between his bent knees. “One of the things I miss—one of the things I never expected to miss—about home is the different seasons. Of course, I didn’t appreciate them when I was a boy, but I still… I still remember them. I remember how the smell of the air changed from dark and musty to floral and bright. The colors of the leaves changed, the crunch underfoot as they fell off. How the earth dried in the fall, and froze in the winter, and was beautifully moist at first plow in the spring.”

“I... I never really thought of it that way, Chakotay.” She responded, her voice quiet to match his own somber tone. “We don’t really have much in the way of a calendar out here anymore, do we?”

“We really don’t. Winter was always my favorite season. The woods were quiet, especially at night and when it snowed. Everything looked new and different with a fresh layer of snow on it… it was like seeing everything for the first time all over again—the bent branches of the evergreen trees, the intricate weaving of a bird’s nest nestled into the corner of a bare limb, the curves and edges of trees and underbrush. The mundane, the everyday… it was all turned on its head. It created… a new story, a new perspective on the things I thought I knew so well. Even though it was one of the harshest seasons to prepare for and live with, it brought with it the most peace and joy.”

Reaching a bare hand over the edge of the blanket, a dark finger ran through the fluff of white, barely visible in the shadow despite the brightness from the holographic sky above. Kathryn sat, mesmerized by the graceful movement of his hand, waiting out the pregnant silence for Chakotay to continue. When he did, his voice was deep and soft.

“You know, snow is deceiving. It looks innocent, unintimidating. Light. Fluffy. Unique. But its power is nearly unmatched in nature.” Chakotay’s glanced at the woman sitting beside him. “A light dusting or an avalanche…either one can bring joy and sorrow in equal measure, depending on how they are understood and dealt with. Snow isn’t something you can rush or run through. You can’t lose your temper or make rash decisions and survive a snowstorm, much less a full winter. It requires planning and consideration, warmth and tenaciousness and a special kind of stubbornness."

A soft chuckle escapes his throat. "My people say that those who love the winter, and especially the snow, must cultivate an inner stillness and strength for their love to thrive. Of course, as a kid I thought that was nonsense, that you could just love something to love it… But as I’ve grown older, I see the wisdom in the idea that we must actively spend our time and energy cultivating not what or who we love, but traits within ourselves that make that love possible. So, I came here to remember what I love about winter, and about the snow. To remind me of why I chose this path.”

Chakotay’s eyes had drifted back to the icy dust before him as he spoke. This time, when he stopped talking, the silence was comfortable. Kathryn released a soft breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding, leaning her head against his shoulder.

“Are you calling me snow, Commander?” Her voice was soft with obvious humor. 

His lips quirked up at the edges and his fingers continued to trace an outline into the snow around them. Kathryn yawned widely, then shot Chakotay a sheepish grin.

“Would you like me to walk you to the entrance, Captain?” Chakotay offered.

Surveying the field around them, she shook her head before curling onto her side on the blanket, her head resting on his thigh.

“No, Chakotay. I think I’m where I need to be.” She winked at him and pulled the blanket closer around her chin. “Let it snow.”

As his fingers began to card softly through her hair, he murmured his agreement.

“Let it snow.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> As always, I love kudos and feedback (including constructive criticism!). <3 
> 
> Thanks for reading and enjoy the 25 Days of Voyager!


End file.
